Houthis Gain Leverage Over 12%-15% of Maritime Trade as Hormuz Closure Lifts Bab al-Mandab Risk
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 21
Houthis Gain Leverage Over 12%-15% of Maritime Trade as Hormuz Closure Lifts Bab al-Mandab Risk
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 21
Summary
Bab al-Mandab has become a new pressure point because the Houthis are now positioned to disrupt a strait carrying 12% to 15% of global maritime trade.
Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has amplified that leverage, giving the Yemen-based group unusual power over Red Sea traffic and energy flows tied to the Suez Canal.
The Houthis could use that position to renew a blockade, reignite Yemen’s war, complicate any U.S.-Iran deal and pull Washington deeper into the region’s conflict.
Northern Yemen’s dominant armed group has emerged as a more independent actor than many policymakers assumed, despite relying on Iranian weapons, training and know-how.
That rise comes after other Iranian-aligned forces were weakened or toppled, leaving the Houthis in a stronger relative position within Tehran’s regional network.